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Sustainability

StratoSil® is produced from rice hulls, a natural source of amorphous silica, utilizing a low-intensity, Earth friendly process.Carbon dioxide emissions are a small fraction of that from synthetically produced silica which is made from sand.

The patented IST process purifies amorphous silica already present in rice hulls.Synthetic silicas rely on a “brute force” approach to break down the crystalline structure of silica in sand with an energy and chemical intensive process.

In the IST process the rice hulls serve not only as the source of silica but the carbon based materials present in the hulls also provide a renewable energy source for the heat needed in the process.This means that the carbon dioxide emitted from incinerating hulls does not add to atmospheric levels – it’s re-absorbed by the next rice crop.The only fossil fuel input for the IST process is from the electricity used.

The small amount of contact water generated by the IST process contains tiny amounts of organic material leached from the rice hulls in the aqueous treatment process. This water is easily treated to allow for recycling.

At IST we believe in good stewardship of the Earth’s resources. For us, replacing synthetically produced silica, with its high carbon footprint, with all natural silica from rice hulls is the right thing to do for future generations.